1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a method and system for facilitating information exchange between individuals and entities interacting on a shared project, and more particularly to a method and system for horizontal, i.e., non-hierarchical, participation in and/or contribution to a spreadsheet-based project. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the method and system facilitate efficacious remote information access and exchange, e.g., over a computer network such as the Internet and/or the World Wide Web.
2. Background of the Disclosure
The use of spreadsheets to collect, assess, monitor and manage information and data is pervasive. Over time, spreadsheet technology has evolved into a host of computer-based systems that facilitate flexibility and diverse applications, both for personal and business uses. Software products such as VisiCalc, Lotus 1-2-3, Quattro Pro and Excel have greatly expanded the availability and use of computer-based spreadsheet applications. Spreadsheet technology has also become part of innumerable “legacy” systems developed by companies to meet their specific needs and objectives, as those needs have evolved over time.
The computer-based systems and procedures for budgeting/forecasting corporate performance and for monitoring/evaluating actual performance relative to budget/forecast exemplify both the power and the limitations of current spreadsheet technology. A typical budgeting process is hugely time-consuming, cumbersome and inefficient, entailing countless iterations through reams of data. Typically, the budgeting process involves synthesis of historical information, competitive issues, long and short term corporate objectives, and forecasted revenues and expenses. Participants in a typical budgeting process are called upon to provide relevant information within their areas of responsibility and/or expertise. This information is fed into a spreadsheet program for ultimate consolidation into an overall budget.
Budgeting participants are often dependent on additional individuals within the organization to provide necessary information and input, e.g., information as to historical and projected performance, competitive pressures and the like. The involvement of these additional individuals is generally limited in that their participation in the budgeting process is controlled and/or filtered by the individual(s) within the corporate hierarchy to or through whom such individuals report. Moreover, current budgeting procedures are generally unable to effectively address and/or recognize the inter-related and inter-dependent nature of individually forecasted numbers. For example, if the sales organization forecasts a significantly greater percentage of sales in the far east, the various support functions that will be impacted by such increased sales, e.g., shipping and receiving, customer service, etc., may need to adjust their forecasts to reflect the shift in sales. However, current budgeting procedures generally do not facilitate the types of communications required to identify such variations and, once identified, to adjust the budget/forecast figures to accommodate such variations. Despite the significant expenditure of effort and expense, the budgeting process often lacks long-term value to management.
The implications of failures in the budgeting process are significant. First, individuals who are required to provide input to the budgeting process through a “superior” in the corporate hierarchy are often disenfranchised and frustrated by their limited involvement. Moreover, these individuals cannot be expected to take ownership of, or responsibility for, the final budget because their involvement was so attenuated and limited. Second, the hierarchical approach to budgeting generally infects the final budget with erroneous assumptions because the inter-related and inter-dependent nature of revenue/expense variables goes largely unrecognized and ignored. Third, the rationale behind various submissions to the budgeting process is often lost in the process. For example, if the R&D function is requesting an increase in headcount/expenditure because the sales/marketing function has identified a specific market need/opportunity that requires additional R&D effort, the underlying rationale for the R&D request, if known by “upper management,” may compel an endorsement of the R&D request. Countless “rationales” support individual budget submissions, the majority of which are lost in the hierarchical budget process.
A further limitation of current budgeting processes is a general inability to integrate the budgeting process, and particularly the company's agreed upon budget, into management of the ongoing operation of the company. While certain members of the management team closely monitor company performance relative to budget, and such performance is periodically communicated to other segments of the corporate operation, particularly when performance is lagging budget forecasts, individuals outside of the “management circle” are largely unable to, and precluded from, measuring their performance against budget.
The failure to integrate the agreed upon budget into the day-to-day operations of a corporation has several negative implications. First, performance trends are not known to individuals having the ability to respond to such trends in a timely fashion. Second, ownership of and commitment to the budget by individuals outside of the “management circle” is further undermined. Third, a corporate culture based on performance against agreed upon objectives is significantly undermined. Fourth, the ability of non-management individuals to develop management skills is minimized. And fifth, an opportunity to learn from year-to-year budget issues, e.g., recognizing the interdependence of R&D expenditure to legal expenses for patent procurement, will go unfulfilled.
A further challenge to the effective management of any geographically dispersed organization is the timely exchange of, and access to, critical information. This challenge is particularly pronounced in the areas of budget preparation and the measurement/management of performance against budget. While a company generally collects, in real time, the data needed to formulate a budget and the performance data necessary to measure performance against budget, the availability of that data to individuals outside the management circle is generally restricted, if available at all. With the continued evolution of data communication, e.g., over the Internet and/or the World Wide Web, the infrastructure required to facilitate timely exchange and availability of data is generally available.
Several issues present themselves when companies evaluate the potential for allowing widespread access within the corporation to proprietary financial information, e.g., budgeting data, performance data, and the like. First and foremost is the need that the confidentiality of such critical information be maintained and that individuals having access to different levels of information be appropriately restricted. A further issue confronting such companies is the latency associated with transmission of such information to remote locations. For a system designed to facilitate remote access to corporate information to be successfully implemented and utilized, the system's response speed must be reliably optimized. Moreover, the system design must facilitate maximum flexibility in the analytical tools available to system users so that optimal assessments and decisions may be made in a timely fashion.
Despite efforts to date, particularly the widespread availability of spreadsheet-based systems and software programs (e.g., Lotus 1-2-3 and Excel), a need remains for a method and system for facilitating information exchange between individuals and entities interacting on a shared project. Indeed, a pronounced need exists for a method and system that facilitate horizontal, i.e., non-hierarchical, participation in and/or contribution to a shared project, e.g., a spreadsheet-based budgeting and/or performance measurement tool. Additionally, a need exists for a system and method that facilitate remote information access and exchange, e.g., over a computer network such as the Internet and/or the World Wide Web, with reduced latency.